The present invention relates to a strut-nut system for the suspended securement, typically at or near ceiling level, of a threaded rod which, in turn, secures selective conduits including, without limitation, electrical and fluid conduits.
In the prior art, the installation of ceiling pipes in residential, commercial and industrial environments has been a tedious and costly undertaking. Further, the process of servicing such conduits, once installed, has proven to be difficult, expensive and time-consuming.
The present invention represents a companion invention to the Suspendable Conduit Bracket System referenced above, primarily for use in the so-called UNI-STRUT area, to applications in combination with a threaded rod, such use optionally including use of a so-called Tinnerman snap-nut.
No prior art known to the inventors discloses a means for securing a rod to a threaded rod having compatibility for use with a UNI-STRUT hanger. The UNI-STRUT is a multi-purpose suspension system which takes the form of a suspended hollow channel having a rectangular cross-section having top, left and right sides thereof and also having, as a bottom surface thereof, resilient, typically polymeric, elements secured within edges or tracks at the left and right sides thereof. The concept of the UNI-STRUT hanger is that brackets of various types can be secured at selectable elevation and angulation thereto after the UNI-STRUT hanger itself has been suspended at a desired height and axis within or upon a particular structure. Also, elements may be selectably slidable within the left and right securing edges (tracks) thereof to provide for moveability, of any bracket secured thereto, relative to the axis of the UNI-STRUT.
Once the appropriate bracket is secured to the UNI-STRUT, mechanical means of various types may be nested within such bracket structure for selectable coupling and decoupling therewith. The instant invention relates to one such means, namely, a strut-nut to which may be secured rigid threaded member.
The present system is formed completely of components that may be selectably coupled, as by snap-and twist-fitting, to form common connections between all such components, thusly eliminating the need for much of the laborious aspects associated with the installation of conduit piping in the prior art. It is, accordingly, as a response to such limitations in the art that the present invention is directed.